Lexi duPont just wants to spread the love. Some things really are that simple, and the inspiration behind the duPont-designed Eddie Bauer Lexi Mitt is one of them. “When you’re wearing a mitten, all you can really do is give people a thumbs up,” says duPont. “I wanted to put some more love into the world, so I came up with the idea of having a mitten with a heart on the palm, so you can spread love whenever you wear them.” Pro skier duPont, a former Junior Olympian and Freeride World Tour champ, is now an Eddie Bauer-sponsored athlete and a bit of a philanthropist. The Lexi Mitt—which duPont wanted to call the “Lexi Love Glove” but Eddie Bauer demurred—was born from the desire to address the world’s current strife in a positive way. “With the state of the world we’re finding ourselves in—with politics, climate change, human rights—it felt really important to me to finally produce this mitten,” she explains. “I’d been thinking about it for years.”

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The Lexi duPont Mitt.

Photo courtesy of Eddie Bauer

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She’s also been thinking about ways to get the next generation engaged in preserving the environment, especially in light of this past summer’s hurricanes and wildfires. With Eddie Bauer and the Lexi Mitt, she found an opportunity to do just that. Proceeds from sales of the mitten will benefit American Forests, whose mission is to protect and restore ecosystems around the world. “People are disconnected from the natural world right now,” duPont says. “I honestly think it’s part of the reason we’re seeing these natural disasters. We’re just not in tune with the planet.” DuPont is passionate that if the next generation has a chance to get out and enjoy nature—that it’s still here for them to enjoy—they’ll make a deeper connection with it, leading to respect for the planet and its dwindling resources. “Respecting nature is healing,” she says.

The Lexi Mitt isn’t just a pretty piece of handwear. DuPont was adamant that it be a killer mitten too, warm and functional, with a couple bells and whistles thrown in for good measure. For one, there’s a zipper along the index finger that accesses a touchscreen-compatible glove liner. And despite the name, this is a gender-neutral mitt that comes in all sizes. “Because,” insists duPont, “spreading love is for all the people.”

The mitten is in stores and online this fall, and retails for $149. Find it at eddiebauer.com.

Growing up in Albany, N.Y., Jason Levinthal had more fun on his snowboard than his skis, so as a college senior he designed skis that looked like his board, Igniting the twin-tip revolution. Line skis, now a Top-10 Manufacturer, soon followed.